I would like your opinions about this pontoon boat as I am thinking about buying the 2004 Alante 225 RE Premier pontoon boat with a Zieman trailer from the Pacific Marine Center in Madera CA.

It will have a 90 hp Yamaha engine, I will be used for fishing and comfort and speed is not what I am looking for. I have added a couple of options such as additional fishing chairs, port-a-potty, fishfinder, BBQ and the price comes in the 26 thousand range.
It all looks well built but what do I know LOL! Please let me know what you experts think and please be kind as I am new at this :-)
Thanks in advance,
George

Experts? heh.... but we mean well.

I never saw any complaints on the 90 Yamaha. The whole package sounds a
little pricy - but I'm East Coast.

-W



"George" wrote in message
...
I would like your opinions about this pontoon boat as I am thinking about
buying the 2004 Alante 225 RE Premier pontoon boat with a Zieman trailer
from the Pacific Marine Center in Madera CA.
It will have a 90 hp Yamaha engine, It will be used for fishing and comfort
and speed is not what I am looking for. I have added a couple of options
such as additional fishing chairs, port-a-potty, fishfinder, BBQ and the
price comes in the 26 thousand range.
It all looks well built but what do I know LOL! Please let me know what you
experts think and please be kind as I am new at this :-)
Thanks in advance,
George

That whole package is expensive. I know dealers in Northern Ontario who have
dozens of those on their property, now covered in snow and they would sell
you one for a fraction that price. Shop around, you wont just save yourself
a few hundred bucks, but probably a few thousand bucks, if not more.
I always didn't like the pontoon style unless your simply staying in inland
waters, small lakes, or something like the Trent Canal system, or similar in
your area. For the Great Lakes or larger water systems, they are not good,
not safe and uncomfortable. A hull obviously works better in rougher seas.
But if you really like it, your boating is mostly inland and small water
systems, then offer that dealer something like 18,000 which is around 30
off. That seems more fair, allows them a profit (not a retirement package)
and you perceive more value for your purchase.

good luck







"Clams Canino" wrote in message
news:5bkEb.587741$Tr4.1561367@attbi_s03...

Experts? heh.... but we mean well.

I never saw any complaints on the 90 Yamaha. The whole package sounds a
little pricy - but I'm East Coast.

-W



"George" wrote in message
...
I would like your opinions about this pontoon boat as I am thinking about
buying the 2004 Alante 225 RE Premier pontoon boat with a Zieman trailer
from the Pacific Marine Center in Madera CA.
It will have a 90 hp Yamaha engine, It will be used for fishing and
comfort
and speed is not what I am looking for. I have added a couple of options
such as additional fishing chairs, port-a-potty, fishfinder, BBQ and the
price comes in the 26 thousand range.
It all looks well built but what do I know LOL! Please let me know what
you
experts think and please be kind as I am new at this :-)
Thanks in advance,
George

What makes this a better boat than the SunTrackers? I understand that the
suntrackers are the basic pontoon boats, but this is about $10k over the
price of a SunTracker.

The Yamaha motor will add a few bucks - I've heard that they are excellent
motors.


"George" wrote in message
...
I would like your opinions about this pontoon boat as I am thinking about
buying the 2004 Alante 225 RE Premier pontoon boat with a Zieman trailer
from the Pacific Marine Center in Madera CA.
It will have a 90 hp Yamaha engine, I will be used for fishing and comfort
and speed is not what I am looking for. I have added a couple of options
such as additional fishing chairs, port-a-potty, fishfinder, BBQ and the
price comes in the 26 thousand range.
It all looks well built but what do I know LOL! Please let me know what you
experts think and please be kind as I am new at this :-)
Thanks in advance,
George

What makes this a better boat than the SunTrackers? I understand that the
suntrackers are the basic pontoon boats, but this is about $10k over the
price of a SunTracker.


Things on a SunTracker that could use a little help:

- Deck, rails and furniture are screwed down. Bolts are better.
- I feel the rotocast furniture bases are not as sturdy (thick) as they should
be
- Wiring could be beefier.
- Some of the fittings are poor quality pot metal. Discovered this while
looking at a SunTracker one day, tried adjusting the seat position and the
lever broke off with little encouragement. Looked more closely, and sure
enough, the seat hardware was poor quality pot metal.

Add to this Tracker puts small motors on their boat to keep the price low, and
advertises their "national price" without freight and rigging.

SunTracker does some things well. The vinyl is good quality, and the carpet is
pretty fair. They're not bad boats, but the cost cutting shows if you know
where to look.

$26K is premium pricing for a pontoon boat. Check some other brands. I have a
Crest, and I purchased it because it represented much better quality than
SunTracker for similar money.



-- Rich Stern
www.nitroowners.com - The Nitro and Tracker Owners Web Site
www.mypontoon.com - The Pontoon Boat Web Site
www.fishingreportdatabase.com - The Fishing Report Database
www.mysporttrac.com - The Sport Trac Web Site

Sounds like it's overpriced. Do not own a pontoon, dad did, but was a used
one. Give Cope and McPheeters a call, and see what their price is. They
are on the expensive side, so would give you an idea if Pacific is in line.
They have several locations in NorCal. Closest is Santa Clara probably.
Bill

"George" wrote in message
...
I would like your opinions about this pontoon boat as I am thinking about
buying the 2004 Alante 225 RE Premier pontoon boat with a Zieman trailer
from the Pacific Marine Center in Madera CA.
It will have a 90 hp Yamaha engine, I will be used for fishing and comfort
and speed is not what I am looking for. I have added a couple of options
such as additional fishing chairs, port-a-potty, fishfinder, BBQ and the
price comes in the 26 thousand range.
It all looks well built but what do I know LOL! Please let me know what you
experts think and please be kind as I am new at this :-)
Thanks in advance,
George

Who the h*ll would be crazy enough to go to Northern Ontario this time of
year to buy a boat and then have to trailer it home?
I'm planning to make a road trip to Quebec/Ontario in May looking for a
Sandpiper 565.


Tuuk wrote in message
...
That whole package is expensive. I know dealers in Northern Ontario who
have
dozens of those on their property, now covered in snow and they would sell
you one for a fraction that price. Shop around, you wont just save
yourself
a few hundred bucks, but probably a few thousand bucks, if not more.
I always didn't like the pontoon style unless your simply staying in
inland
waters, small lakes, or something like the Trent Canal system, or similar
in
your area. For the Great Lakes or larger water systems, they are not good,
not safe and uncomfortable. A hull obviously works better in rougher seas.
But if you really like it, your boating is mostly inland and small water
systems, then offer that dealer something like 18,000 which is around 30
off. That seems more fair, allows them a profit (not a retirement package)
and you perceive more value for your purchase.

good luck







"Clams Canino" wrote in message
news:5bkEb.587741$Tr4.1561367@attbi_s03...

Experts? heh.... but we mean well.

I never saw any complaints on the 90 Yamaha. The whole package sounds a
little pricy - but I'm East Coast.

-W



"George" wrote in message
...
I would like your opinions about this pontoon boat as I am thinking
about
buying the 2004 Alante 225 RE Premier pontoon boat with a Zieman
trailer
from the Pacific Marine Center in Madera CA.
It will have a 90 hp Yamaha engine, It will be used for fishing and
comfort
and speed is not what I am looking for. I have added a couple of options
such as additional fishing chairs, port-a-potty, fishfinder, BBQ and the
price comes in the 26 thousand range.
It all looks well built but what do I know LOL! Please let me know what
you
experts think and please be kind as I am new at this :-)
Thanks in advance,
George